US Treasury Announces New Russia Sanctions Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict and Failed Peace Efforts

Scott Bessent announced on Wednesday that the US is preparing to implement heightened sanctions against Russia.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent revealed on Wednesday that the Trump administration is set to announce increased sanctions on Russia as US-led peace efforts struggle and Ukraine's president continues seeking additional military assistance.

"We are going to announce either after the close this afternoon or first thing tomorrow morning a substantial pickup in Russia sanctions," Bessent informed reporters at the White House. His statement came while NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte was in Washington for discussions and preparing to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House.

Bessent did not elaborate on the nature of the sanctions. His announcement followed Russian drone and missile strikes across Ukraine that killed at least six people, including a mother and her two young daughters. The attacks occurred in waves throughout the night, targeting at least eight Ukrainian cities and a village near Kyiv, where a strike ignited a house where the mother and her 6-month-old and 12-year-old daughters were staying, according to regional head Mykola Kalashnyk.

At least 29 people, including five children, were wounded in Kyiv, which appeared to be the primary target, authorities reported.

Russian drones also struck a kindergarten in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, later Wednesday while children were present, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said. One person was killed and six were injured, though no children were physically harmed.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said many children were in shock. He reported that the attack targeted 10 separate regions: Kyiv, Odesa, Chernihiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad, Poltava, Vinnytsia, Zaporizhzhia, Cherkasy and Sumy.

Russia launched 405 strike and decoy drones and 28 missiles, primarily targeting Kyiv, according to Ukraine's air force.

Trump's efforts to end the war that began with Russia's full-scale invasion more than three years ago have failed to gain momentum. Trump has repeatedly expressed frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin's unwillingness to deviate from his settlement conditions, even after Ukraine offered a ceasefire and direct peace talks.

Trump stated Tuesday that his plan for a prompt meeting with Putin was on hold because he didn't want it to be a "waste of time." European leaders accused Putin of deliberately delaying progress.

Zelenskyy said Wednesday that Trump's proposal to freeze the conflict along the current front line "was a good compromise" that could facilitate negotiations.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov indicated the planned summit requires careful preparation, suggesting groundwork could take time. "No one wants to waste time: neither President Trump nor President Putin," he said.

In what appeared to be a public reminder of Russian nuclear capabilities, Putin on Wednesday directed drills of the country's strategic nuclear forces.

Zelenskyy urged the European Union, the United States, and the G7 nations to pressure Russia toward negotiations. He stated Moscow can be influenced "only through sanctions, long-range (missile) capabilities and coordinated diplomacy among all our partners."

Zelenskyy credited Trump's consideration of supplying Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine for Putin's willingness to meet. The American president later expressed hesitation about depleting US Tomahawk stocks.

Russia has not achieved significant battlefield progress, where a war of attrition has heavily impacted Russian infantry while Ukraine faces manpower shortages, according to military analysts. Both sides have invested in long-range strike capabilities to target rear areas.

The Ukrainian army's general staff reported its forces struck a chemical plant Tuesday night in Russia's Bryansk region using British-made air-launched Storm Shadow missiles. The plant is an important component of Russia's military-industrial complex, producing gunpowder, explosives, missile fuel, and ammunition.

Russian regional officials confirmed an attack but did not mention the plant.

Ukraine also claimed overnight strikes on the Saransk mechanical plant in Mordovia, Russia, which produces ammunition components and mines, and the Makhachkala oil refinery in Russia's Dagestan republic.

The Russian Defense Ministry stated its air defenses intercepted 33 Ukrainian drones over several regions overnight, including the area around St. Petersburg. Eight airports temporarily suspended operations due to the attacks.

Zelenskyy arrived Wednesday in Oslo, Norway, before traveling to Stockholm, where he and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson signed an agreement exploring Ukraine's potential purchase of up to 150 Swedish-made Gripen fighter jets over the next decade or longer. Ukraine has already received American-made F-16s and French Mirages.

Trump was expected to hold talks at the White House with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Wednesday. The military alliance has been coordinating weapons deliveries to Ukraine, many purchased from the United States by Canada and European countries.

Additional international economic sanctions on Russia are likely to be discussed Thursday at an EU summit in Brussels. On Friday, a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing — a group of 35 countries supporting Ukraine — is scheduled in London.

Moscow's overnight attack also targeted energy infrastructure, causing rolling blackouts, officials said. Russia has been attempting to cripple Ukraine's power grid before winter arrives.

"We heard a loud explosion and then the glass started to shatter, and then everything was caught up in a burst of fire. The embers were everywhere," Olena Biriukova, a Kyiv apartment resident, told The Associated Press.

"It was very scary for kids," she added.

Two people were found dead in the Dnipro district of Kyiv, where emergency services rescued 10 people after a fire caused by drone debris struck the sixth floor of a 16-story residential building, local authorities reported.

In Kyiv's Darnytskyi district, emergency services responded after drone debris hit a 17-story apartment block, causing a fire across five floors. Fifteen people were rescued, including two children.